Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
CA 02426915 2003-07-22
_A/''[S Version PRE
Patent-Treuhand-Gesellschaft
fur elektrische Glihlampen mbH., Munich
Low-pressure discharge lamp with a device for switching
it off at the end of its service life
TECHNICAL FIELD
The invention relates to a 'Low-pressure discharge lamp,
1.0 having a tubular discharge vessel made from glass, the
free ends of which are closed catf in a gas tight
manner, two electrode systems each laving a filament,
two supply conductors and a bead a t qlass, the ends of
the supply conductors b(,'ng fused i.rnt o the ends of the
discharge vessel whi_coh have bee!, closed off in a gas
tight manner eoid, i_rr order tc:: be lieId iri a region
between the filament and the disch-arge vessel fused
seal., into the bead, and a day ice [o.r :,witching off the
lamp at. the encl. of its e r- v:i ce 1 f. e: comprising a paste
L0 which contains a metal ;yc;.:ide and is fitted to the
bead.
BACKGROUND ART
US Patent 5, 70 5, 887 hhas disc l o:>seci a low-pressure
discharge lamp of t.h:is type. At th,c-;e E=nd of the service
life of the low-piessu:ra discharge lamp, when the
filament breaks or..r t: he errr:it-t:er material has been
consumed, the lamp sw:i_t-1che s over to cold-cathode
operation, which leads t ~n ir' ease in the cathode
fall. voltage and therefore to considerable heating of
the metal parts in the lamp. The onn.iderable increase
in the temperature of the metal pants leads to the
metal hydride in the past which Is arranged in the
area of radiation from the f lament, and in contact with
the supply conductors on the ala =n bead breaking down.
The decomposition of the metal hydride, in particular
titanium hydride, leads to :"rydroger, being released and
CA 02426915 2010-09-15
66498-169
2 -
the discharge being extinguished on account of the
increasing operating voltage of the lamp.
Arranging the paste which contains metal hydride in the
region of the radiation from the filament and in
thermal contact with the supply conductors leads to
reliable release of the hydrogen and therefore to the
lamp being extinguished at the end of its service life.
However, it has been found that a design of this type
can lead to premature failure of the low-pressure
discharge lamp if it is operated at a ballast which
allows the filament heating current to rise during the
preheating phase until the lamp has ignited. In this
case, the rise in the filament radiation and the
heating of the supply conductors can lead to premature
decomposition of the metal hydride. Then, the hydrogen
released extinguishes the lamp before it reaches the
end of its service life as a result of emitter
consumption.
DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION
Therefore, it is an object of some embodiments of the
invention to provide
a lamp having a device for switching off the low-
pressure discharge lamp at the end of its service life,
in which premature failures resulting from high
filament heating currents in the ballast are prevented.
This object is achieved by a low-pressure discharge
lamp, having a tubular discharge vessel made from
glass, the free ends of which are closed off in a gas
tight manner,two electrode systems each having a
filament, two supply conductors and a bead consisting
of a glass material having a resistivity of greater
than 108 S)cm at 350 C, the ends of the supply
conductors being fused into the ends of the discharge
vessel which have been closed off in a gas tight manner
and, in order to be held in a region between the
filament and the discharge vessel fused seal, into the
CA 02426915 2010-09-15
66498-169
3 -
bead, a device for switching off the lamp at the end of
its service life, comprising a paste which contains a
metal hydride, is applied to the bead in the radiation
shadow with respect to the thermal radiation which
emanates from the filament of the lamp in operation and
during filament preheating and is not in electrical
contact with the supply conductor wires on the bead.
The use of a material which has a resistivity of
greater than 108 Qcm at 350 C for the bead makes it
possible to ensure that the material of the bead does
not become conductive at up to the decomposition
temperature of the metal hydride. Heating of the metal
hydride caused by direct heat conduction is
substantially suppressed.
Furthermore, according to some embodiments of the invention the
paste containing the metal hydride is applied to the bead in
the radiation shadow with respect to the thermal
radiation which emanates from the filament of the lamp
in operation. This makes it possible to prevent the
paste and therefore the metal hydride from being heated
up by the direct action of heat from the filament.
Moreover, the paste is applied to the bead in such a
way that it is not in electrical contact with the
supply conductor wires. This substantially suppresses
heat conduction from the supply conductor to the paste.
Therefore, the bead advantageously consists of a
potassium barium silicate glass which has a resistivity
of greater than or equal to 1010 S)cm at 350 C. In this
way, the bead is optimally prevented from becoming
electrically conductive all the way up to the
temperature at which hydrogen is released, namely
400 C.
CA 02426915 2003-07-22
Furthermore, the glass bead i. c:dvantageous.ly not
spherical, but rather iii the ship c~f a cylinder or a
roll, the axis of which ~..r.:ansversei.y with
respect to the axis of th d harge vessel in this
region, the supply conductors bei_n.ca fused in close to
the two ends of they cyl:i.nth:ical bead and the paste
containing the metal hydride acing applied to that part
of the bead which is remotes from the filament, in the
radiation shadow with respect to the filament. A
mushroom shape with the cap of the. mushroom facing the
filament and the paste c: st:. xir i r ca ''he metal ''hydride
being located below t:he .,, r ?:he: radiation shadow
with respect to the f .:k.:amer: t , is , lso advantageous.
This optimally suppresses heat...i n:q of the paste and
1.5 therefore the metal hydride by the radiant heat.
Tests carried out with different. shapes and sizes of
bead have demonstrated. that in tale case of a bead in
the shape of a cylinder or rn':ll, the circle should
advantageously have a di,arneter d rt no which satisfies
the following empi..ric:;<r1.. :rorrni.aa.a:
d > 0.2026 x m + 1.7617 where m -2 mg
where m is the quantity of paste containing the metal
hydride in mg. Otherwise, the required quantity of
paste cannot reliably be arranged in the shadow with
respect to the filament and without contact wit-.h the
supply conduct.o.r .
In addition, that point:: o>f the bea,A which is closest to
the gas tight closure of the discharge vessel is at a
distance of at least 2mm from this closure. it this
condition is riot complied wi.t , closing of the
discharge vessel during lamp production, with the
considerable heat which 1s produced, lead to glass
sealing to the bead and therefore 1 a the hydrogen being
released from the metal laydx ide tcjrntpound
CA 02426915 2010-09-15
66498-169
-5-
The metal hydride in the paste advantageously contains a metal selected from
the
group consisting of titanium, zirconium and/or hafnium or a metal alloy
selected
from the group consisting of titanium-zirconium, titanium-hafnium and/or
zirconium-hafnium alloys as metal for the metal hydride.
A particularly suitable paste material for the metal hydride is a rheological
additive
in a proportion of less than or equal to 50% by weight.
Optimum results can be achieved with a paste which contains titanium hydride
TiH2 as metal hydride. Tests have shown that the release of hydrogen increases
as the ratio of surface area to volume in the titanium hydride grains
increases, and
consequently the smaller the grain size of the titanium hydride the more
hydrogen
is released. It was possible to achieve optimum prevention of the lamp being
switched off as a result of hydrogen being released prematurely during the
preheating phase by using a paste containing titanium hydride tiH2 which has a
mean grain size of greater than 50 pm.
In one broad aspect of the invention, there is provided a low-pressure
discharge
lamp, having a tubular discharge vessel made from glass, the free ends of
which
are closed off in a gas tight manner, two electrode systems each having a
filament, two supply conductors and a bead consisting of a glass material
having a
resistivity of greater than 108 S2cm at 350 C, the ends of the supply
conductors
being fused into the ends of the discharge vessel which have been closed off
in a
gas tight manner and, in order to be held in a region between the filament and
the
discharge vessel fused seal, into the bead, a device for switching off the
lamp at
the end of its service life, comprising a paste which contains a metal
hydride, is
applied to the bead in the radiation shadow with respect to the thermal
radiation
which emanates from the filament of the lamp in operation and during filament
preheating and is not in electrical contact with the supply conductor wires on
the
bead.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
The invention is to be explained in more detail below with reference to a
plurality
of exemplary embodiments. In the drawings:
CA 02426915 2010-09-15
66498-169
- 5a -
Figure 1 shows an end of an exemplary embodiment according to the invention of
a low-pressure discharge lamp with a bead in the shape of a cylinder or roll;
Figure 2 shows an end of a second exemplary embodiment according to the
invention of a low-pressure discharge lamp with a mushroom-shaped bead
CA 02426915 2003-07-22
BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION
Figure 1 shows an end of a first embodiment of a
compact low-pressure discharge lamp having a discharge
vessel which has been bent. a number of times. The ends
of the discharge vessel are closed by pinches, the two
supply conductors 5, of an el e :t:rode system being
fused into the end 1 of the discharc e vessel which is
shown here and has been closed of in a gas tight
manner by a pinch 2. The electrode system also
comprises a filament 7 and a glass bead 8, which is
located approximately in the cer ter between the
filament 7 and the pinch 2 and ?.eta which the two
supply conductors 5, 6 are fused. The glass bead 8
consists of a potassium barium silicate glass and is
substantially in the shape of a cylinder or roll with
rounded ends, the axis of the cylinder or roll running
transversely with respect to the axis of the discharge
vessel in this region. The bead 8 has e length of 7 nun
and a diameter of 6 no. The two supp_y conductors 5, 6
are fused in close to L he two ends of the bead 8. A
paste 9 comprising a titanium hydride and a rheological
additive has been applied to that side of the lateral
surface which is remote from the filament 7, the
location comprising the paste beino located in the
shadow with respect to ..he radiation from the filament
Figure 2 shows a second exemplary embodiment of a
discharge vessel end 1.0 Of a compact low--pressure
discharge lamp with a similar structure in terms of the
electrode system. The end of the discharge vessel 10
with the pinch 11 has in this case been rotated through
90 about its axis. The electrode system 12 with a
filament 13 and supply ccnduct:or3 14 (only one supply
conductor is visible in this view) differs from the
system shown in Figure 1. through t he fact that in this
case the bead 1.5 of a potassium barium silicate glass
is in the shape of a mushroom with a cap 16 and a stem
CA 02426915 2003-07-22
17, the cap 16 facing the 1 .ictr:~r~t: 13. Consequently,
the paste 18 cont.a.i. ni rig the t,L't:sn am hycride, which has
been applied to both sides J:f t.e stEm 17 below the cap
16, is in the shadow with respect. to the radiation from
the filament. 1.3.
